Fun, flirty flavours mark chef Garima Arora’s new restaurant in Mumbai as she simultaneously powers her two Michelin-starred restaurant Gaa in Bangkok.
“I’m excited to see how Mumbai takes to my rendition of Thai cuisine,” says Garima Arora as we settle down to chat over a leisurely lunch at her new restaurant, Banng, in the leafy lanes of Bandra. Powering her two-Michelin starred restaurant, Gaa, in Bangkok (Gaa is a portmanteau between her name and surname. Banng takes after Bang – in Bangkok – without the rear), raising kids – a two-year-old and a five-month-old – shifting time zones and perfecting recipes, Garima appears to be balancing everything with the inborn wizardry of a tour de force in the global culinary scape.
Arranged cleverly across two levels: with swing seats at the island bar below, and a kicky menu of bar bites and whacky vodka infusions, there is a winding staircase that ships you upstairs for a scarlet tipped meal of stir fries and curries. Call it the pret and the couture sections – one freestyle and spontaneous, and the other perfect for a lingering meal. But Banng brings in that spontaneity and informality – you can reverse the order, and have a meal to slither down for a drink later too. “All the bells, whistles and brouhaha are mine, and all the superb food is Garima,” laughs Riyaaz Amlani, CEO of Impresario Entertainment & Hospitality, who has partnered with Garima at BANNG. “I have always felt that Thai cuisine has been rather under -served in India. Thai restaurants in the country have always been formal, not fun. Also, people are done with sushi, tempura, and ceviche. I’m in love with Bangkok – it has overtaken Singapore in the culinary sweepstakes. Honestly, Garima and I wanted to set up a restaurant that celebrates Bangkok. BANNG is Bangkok.”
With Banng making inroads in the Gurgaon culinary circuit last year, the menu is decidedly different in Mumbai. “I’m serving at Banng, what Bangkok means to me,” says Garima. The tangy tom kha pani puri with a cold, coconut laced tom kha, as the amuse bouche, is Garima’s spin on the local paani puri and takes me back to her zingy menu at Gaa. Seafood plays out in piquant preparations. The mussels and scallops serenade in a seafood curry, just right in the spice quotient, and make the chilli hum on my lips. Any local inclusions in the menu, like her famous barbequed durians at Gaa? “I’ve tried to bring in small inclusions that are intrinsic to the Mumbai foodscape, like the mini jhinga – the aambad – in the stir fries,” she confesses.
“Tamarind and lime are the two tangy elements in Thai cuisine. Tamarind is the gamechanger, and I carry that from Thailand to Banng,” she reveals, adding that 400 slices of lime used every day makes it impossible to fly down lemons from Bangkok! “Chillies can make or break a dish. As Indians we love spice, but not bitterness. The dynamics of the tiny red Thai chilli play out beautifully. There is hardly any salt used as the use of fish sauce compensates for that,” she explains.
There’s an equal spotlight on veg and non veg options on the menu. “In small plates at the bar, I’ve brought in versions of okra and pumpkin. Seafood plays out in the non-vegetarian plates, the location being Mumbai,” she says. So, there are spicy cheese cigar rolls inspired by Thailand’s 7/11 Ham and Cheese sandwiches; that eclectic Gaeng Grob which brings in pineapple and okra powered spicy curry on a crunchy potato nest – superlative and kicky – and the spicy, limy punch in the seabass ceviche: my gin sip in the Sabai Sundowner with puckered rambutan flavours complements this perfectly. Follows the robust Phuket seafood bucket with juicy prawns, spicy squid rings, clams and curiously, sweet potato; and tuna with wonton chips.
Salads are an absolute winner, take Toss My Yum. “Think of a salad made with rice – like Thai bhel with fresh rice,” she laughs, as we fork in the smashing playout of flavours on the plate – Garima’s prodigy, sous chef Manav Khanna brings out the perfect renditions. The dessert pirouette brings in lipsmacking mango sticky rice,
“If you’ve had authentic Thai food, and then come and eat at Banng, you will taste how we like to cook Thai food,” says Garima bringing in a zippy and zany twist to the unique recipes, promising to take me to her favourite Thai outing at Charmgang and Charmkrung in Bangkok the next time we meet. “It started off as a small shop in Chinatown, rocks in flavours, and is thankfully yet undiscovered by the gourmet lists.”
Up next for Garima is handholding Banng along its amazing culinary journey in Mumbai.
Banng Mumbai is now open only for lunch & dinner
Address: Banng, Pinnacle House, 15th Road, PD Hinduja Road, Mumbai
Phone: 9152084411
Hours: Dinner 7pm-1am; Lunch: 12pm-4pm (starting September)
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